Department of Defense Loads Up on Apple iOS Gear, Goes Multi-Vendor

Just like almost every other major enterprise in the U.S, the Department of Defense is getting ready to support a multi-vendor mobile device strategy.

The department has put in an order for 120,000 Apple iPads, 100,000 iPad Minis, 200,000 iPod Touch devices, and 210,000 iPhones. This move does not mean, however, that the DoD will stop supporting and buying Blackberry devices, a spokesperson was quick to point out, after an erroneous report stated that the DoD was giving BlackBerry the boot.

"The department is aware of recent reporting that asserts it is dropping BlackBerry. This reporting is in error," said Lt. Col. Damien Pickart, a spokesperson for the DOD, in an interview with PC Magazine. "The department recently released its mobility strategy and supporting implementation plan," Pickart continued, "which clarifies we are moving towards a mobile management capability that supports a variety of devices, to include BlackBerry."

BlackBerry was also eager to set the record straight that one of its largest and highest profile customers is still on board. “Our work with the U.S. Department of Defense is going well and the U.S. Department of Defense is moving forward with testing of BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10 and the new BlackBerry Z10 smartphone,” the company said in a statement.

No word yet on the DoD’s Android and Windows Phone plans, but if the military is really going multi-vendor, it will have to provide support for those platforms as well, just like every enterprise IT department in the corporate world must, in the increasingly consumerized IT environment.

Rachel Rosmarin's technology reporting experience goes back a decade to the dawn of Wi-Fi, smartphones and the Mp3. She has an in-depth knowledge of consumer electronics and has cultivated her love of useful new toys and innovative social software at publications including Tom’s Guide, Forbes, Business 2.0, Sound & Vision and Mobile Magazine. She holds degrees in Journalism and Science In Human Culture from Northwestern University and is based in Los Angeles.